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Freehold Township surgeon takes aim at obesity

By Michael L. Diamond@mdiamondapp
12:28 a.m. EDT July 26, 2014

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ASB 0726 Biz CP Obesity Dr. Seun Sowemimo, is touring the area talking about the high economic cost of obesity. Photo in his office, Prime Surgicare, in the Medical Arts Building at CentraState in Freehold, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Mary Frank/Staff Photographer(Photo: Gannett/Mary Frank)Buy Photo

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A bariatric surgeon in Freehold Township is calling on the community to treat obesity more aggressively.

It comes as the nation tries to put the brakes on the rising cost of health care.

New Jersey hospitals and insurance companies say their initial results focusing on prevention are promising.

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP – Obesity isn't a problem of self-control, but a disease that should be treated with the seriousness that doctors approach cancer, diabetes and heart disease, a local surgeon says.

It also holds the key to lowering the skyrocketing cost of health care and making workers more productive, he said.

"If you were to tackle obesity and control that, you would have a good handle on the associated diseases," Dr. Seun Sowemimo, a bariatric surgeon, said during an interview this week in his office. "I don't think we've started to really bite into things that will significantly change the cost of the obesity epidemic we're in."

His comments come as public health officials try to rein in the cost of health care that has grown so rapidly that is makes up nearly 17 percent of the nation's economy.

New Jersey's health providers and insurers are chipping in by changing a long-standing business model. Doctors and hospitals traditionally have been paid based on the number of services they provide. Now, they increasingly are being paid based on the outcome of the care they give.

It explains why more patients, seeing their doctor for the flu or a sore throat, are asked to step on a scale or have a discussion about diet and exercise — even if it has nothing to do with their visit. The goal: get a handle on obesity before it contributes to other diseases.

Two surveys released this week show that it is cutting into costs. Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, CentraState Medical Center in Freehold Township, and Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch are among the 12 New Jersey hospitals participating in a three-year study. In it, their physicians received financial incentives from Medicare if they provided high-quality — and more efficient — care.

The result: The hospitals reduced their per-admission cost by 8.5 percent, or $113 million, said the New Jersey Hospital Association, a trade group.

And Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, the state's biggest insurer, this week touted a program in which it works closely with primary-care physicians to encourage patients to live healthier lives. It found the cost of care declined 4 percent.

"We recognize the profoundness of the problem," Dr. Steven Peskin, director of the Horizon program, said of obesity.

Laura Crosbie can relate. The 27-year-old Hazlet resident works as a medical assistant for Sowemimo. She battled obesity beginning in high school and saw her weight increase to 260 pounds. She developed rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes, and she could barely muster energy.

She had gastric bypass surgery in 2012. Her weight has fallen to 145 pounds. And she no longer has to take a diabetes medicine.

"I used to cry just walking up the stairs," she said. "Now I did two 5Ks."

Sowemimo would like the medical industry to go further. He said some insurers limit nutritionist visits. And they still are slow to approve weight-loss surgery, preferring instead to make sure the patient has tried diet and exercise. For some patients, that's not enough. Their bodies have adapted to their new weight and will quickly return to that level despite their best efforts.